1/If Talisker 10 is your bottle, the one that tastes closest is Ledaig 10. Across the like-for-like bottles at Dan Murphy's it's the nearest twin, by the words in the reviews and by what drinkers reach for. It gives you about 96% of the Talisker, and costs $7 more.
2/Talisker 10 in the glass: smoke over a sweet, pear-like note, with heather and a cracked black pepper finish. Ledaig 10: a brisk punch of peat smoke, ripe barley and honeyed vanilla, with a soothing sweetness underneath. Both reviews land on the same word: smoky.
3/This week at Dan Murphy's: Talisker 10 is $92 for members, Ledaig 10 is $99 for members. A yes for each. Stay with the Talisker 10 if it's already your pour; reach for the Ledaig 10 when you fancy a change and don't mind the $7.
| slot | 08-13 | 08-20 | 08-27 | 09-03 | 09-10 | 09-17 | 09-24 | 10-01 | 10-08 | 10-15 | 10-22 | 10-29 | 11-05 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list / member | 122.99 observed | 122.99 m 92.00 observed | 122.99 m 92.00 observed | 122.99 m 92.00 observed | 122.99 observed | 122.99 observed | 122.99 observed | 122.99 observed | 122.99 m 92.00 observed | 122.99 m 92.00 observed | 122.99 m 92.00 observed | 122.99 m 92.00 observed | 107.99 m 92.00 observed |
| basis | mean | median | sd | min | max | range | cv | se mean | latest | own-range pctl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 121.84 | 122.99 | 4.16 | 107.99 | 122.99 | 15.00 | 3.4% | 1.15 | 107.99 | 8 |
| member | 103.92 | 92.00 | 15.69 | 92.00 | 122.99 | 30.99 | 15.1% | 4.35 | 92.00 | 62 |
| moments | m1 mean | m2 var | m3 skew | m4 ex-kurt | 95% band of the mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 121.84 | 17.31 | -3.61 | 13 | 119.6 – 124.1 |
Peat smoke and sea air, all under $100. The Scotch single malts at Dan Murphy's with the most of it, from their own reviews: Caol Ila 12, $99: fish and bacon off a beach barbecue, lightly oily and meaty. Smokehead Islay, $76: young and fiery, toffee apple, charcoal ash and peppered seaweed. Lagavulin 8, $99: straight to the shore, mineral and salt, then a breezy menthol. Glen Moray Peated, $72: sweet smoke and vanilla, lemon icing, a soft ashy finish. Talisker 10, $92: a sweet pear under the smoke, finishing on cracked black pepper. Five routes to the same coast. Pick your weather.
Pour Ledaig 10 of an evening and the peat lands brisk and bracing, its raw edge softened by honeyed vanilla, earthy smoke, ripe barley and a twist of black liquorice. $99 for members at Dan Murphy's, where it usually sells around $104. More in this week's piece.
If Ledaig 10 is your smoke, Talisker 10 sits right alongside it: a Ledaig 10 drinker gets about 99% of what they came for, at 93% of the price. That's $92 for members, sweet pear and cracked black pepper under the smoke. More on Ledaig 10 in this week's piece.
Ask the drinkers of the bottles nearest Ledaig 10 what it's worth to them. Their answers run $86 to $133, each from what they pay for their own. At $99 for members it sits inside that range, an easy yes for the peat drinker. More on Ledaig 10 in this week's piece.
They're all smoky, each in its own way. Ledaig 10 comes to $3.87 a standard drink — a pour at home, around 26 to the bottle. A pint at the pub runs about $6.28 a standard drink. More on Ledaig 10 in this week's piece.
Earthy peat smoke, honeyed vanilla and a stick of black liquorice, a brisk punch with soothing sweetness beneath. That's Ledaig 10, $99 for members at Dan Murphy's this week. It usually sells around $104, so take this as a gentle guide. More in this week's piece.
A mate hands you the aisle at Dan Murphy's and says pick something smoky we'll all drink. That's the quiet test, really — not the bottle you love most, but the one the whole table gets on with. Reach for Ledaig 10 and you've answered it.
| # | candidate | price | CEARP | price − CEARP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ledaig 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $108.99 | $89.53 | +19.46 |
| 2 | Highland Park 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $90.00 | $85.52 | +4.48 |
| 3 | Jura 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $78.00 | $84.46 | -6.46 |
| 4 | Isle of Raasay Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $121.99 | $79.81 | +42.18 |
| 5 | Jura Scotch Whisky Rum Cask Finish 700mL | $83.99 | $76.03 | +7.96 |
| 6 | Talisker Port Ruighe Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $148.99 | $74.56 | +74.43 |
| 7 | Deanston 12YO Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $111.99 | $72.61 | +39.38 |
| 8 | Pearse Lyons Founder's Choice 12 Year Old Single Malt Whiskey 700mL | $131.99 | $72.28 | +59.71 |
| 9 | Hellyers Road The Journeyman 8 Year Old Tasmanian Single Malt Whisky 700mL | $149.99 | $71.22 | +78.77 |
| 10 | Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $75.95 | $70.99 | +4.96 |